St Joseph's club notes

18 April 2017

Underage

Under 8’s Play In Croke Park

The Under 8’s took a trip to the GAA headquarters on Tuesday Last to line out and play on the green sod of Croke Park. A great day was had by one and all when they took part in the Leinster GAA Under-8 Croke Park Go Games for 2017. These boys and girls have achieved something that a lot of men and women still dream about; togging out in the dressing rooms under the stands and jogging out onto that field of dreams and playing one of the best games ever. A huge congratulations to all the boys are girls who took part and especially to all the mentors and mammy’s and daddy’s who made this happen. A very special day that will never be forgotten. Well Done!

Scór

Leinster Champions Again!

A brilliantly crafted performance secured the Leinster Leiriu title for St Josephs at Ballymore on Sunday last as St Joseph’s step onto the All Ireland stage once more for the first time since claiming the All Ireland crown in 2014. The club were represented in the Recitation category where Thomas Pettit was excellent but did not claim the crown on the day. Massive congratulations to Hugo, Ciaran, Ann, Catriona, Deborah, Thomas, Deirdre and the gosson on the team Johnny!

So it’s off to Belfast on Saturday 6th May where the Waterfront Hall won’t know what hit it as the joeys aim to regain the crown. Well done folk’s and roll on the All Ireland!

Scór Concert

With two groups in the All Ireland finals on Saturday 6th May in Belfast, the need to raise funds is necessary and to that end the club’s Scór groups will be holding a concert in the Community centre on Saturday 29th April. It will be a great opportunity for locals to see our talented groups on stage and we hope to have a few special guests to make the night an enjoyable occasion. The event will get underway at 8.00pm and should last until about 10-30pm so all are welcome.

St Joseph’s Ladies

Ladies defeat Loughnavalley in a tough contest:

Friday evening last 7th April, St Joseph’s Ladies took on near neighbours Loughnavalley in a league match where they kept up their winning run after a hard-fought contest. The match venue was Castletown Geoghegan even though it was a home tie for the Valley, whose grounds were unavailable. The pitch was in super condition and weather conditions were ideal. The sun was shining brightly in the first half, but the early spring evening closed quickly in the second half, just allowing enough light for the game to be completed. Loughnavalley fielded 13 players to start and again St Joseph’s Ladies fielded an equal number in the spirit of good sportsmanship. A late arriving opposition player made it 14 a-side within the first 5 minutes and another late arrival made it 15 a-side for the second half. The game started ferociously with both teams cancelling each other out until the 5th minute when Erin Pettit broke the deadlock with a well taken point from the right wing. Sinead Robbins scored a second point in the 7th minute to double the lead. Both defenses were on top and scores were hard to come by, but Karen Keegan who had a super game throughout scored 3 unanswered points in the next 8 minutes to put St Joseph’s Ladies ahead by 0-05 to no score. Loughnavalley opened their account with a point in the 16th minute which was quickly cancelled out by Sinead Robbins but there was never a doubt that the ever resilient Loughnavalley team would keep pressing and they scored a goal in the 20th minute to put them right back in the game. The final 10 minutes of the first half saw these two teams bring the best out of one another and it was Karen Keegan who closed the scoring with an expertly taken point. The first half finished St Joseph’s Ladies 0-07 to Loughnavalley 1-01. With only one score in it, it was all to play for in the second half and as expected Loughnavalley came out all guns blazing, but our ladies stood tall and strong and defended with tenacity. Lisa McCormack’s goal in the 5th minute was a turning point in the game and gave St Joseph’s Ladies the belief that they could push ahead and win this game. Ellie Conway pointed soon afterwards followed by a 2-point reply from the tiring Loughnavalley outfit. St Joseph’s Ladies in most parts controlled the second half and further points from Sinead Robbins, Karen Keegan and a contest ending goal from Machela McCormack saw us over the line. Loughnavalley got the final score of the match in the last minute, with St Joseph’s Ladies running out deserving winners with a score line of 2-11 to 1-04. Well done ladies! Our next game is on April 23rd at home v Shandonagh and as always all support welcomed. Scorers, Karen Keegan 0-06 (1f), Sinead Robbins 0-03 (1f), Machela McCormack 1-00, Lisa McCormack 1-00, Ellie Conway 0-01, Erin Pettit 0-01. Team – Deirdre Ann Nally, Lauren McCormack, Clodagh McCormack, Ciara Maxwell, Roisin Killian, Orla Robbins, Sinead Robbins, Ellie Conway (C), Roisin Kealy, Karen Keegan, Erin Pettit, Corina Corcoran, Marie McDonnell. Subs, Caoimhe Kelly, Lisa McCormack, Machela McCormack, Ashling McCormack and Helen Kelly.

St Joseph’s Senior Men:

Narrow win V Coralstown Kinnegad

We gained an important win against Coralstown/Kinnegad on Saturday 15 April when winning by 4-7 to 3-9 in Kinnegad to move on to five points in the league and continue a push for promotion. St Josephs had an impressive start with goals from Andy Scally and Cathal Johnson but were pegged back by Coralstown/Kinnegad as they levelled matters midway through the opening half. A third goal with six minutes remaining in the half from Aaron Mc Donnell saw us lead deservedly by 3-4 to 1-6 at half time. A scoreless opening five minutes of the second half from both sides was eventually broken by Niall Moran’s goal for St Josephs which put us in a great position at 4-4 to 1-6 but a long stoppage due to a Kinnegad player getting injured broke our momentum. The home side got 2-3 without reply to swing the game in their favour and lead by 3-9 to 4-4 with ten minutes left. St Josephs though showed great character and fired over the last three points of the game to win by one and gain two valuable league points.

Fundraisers

Golf Classic 2017

St Joseph’s GAA will be holding our Annual Golf Classic on Saturday 20th May at Esker Hills Golf club and we are delighted to continue our association with the club as we have done so for many years. This will be our fourth successive year to hold the event and we look forward to seeing many of the same faces as before and perhaps a few new ones at our event in May. The details of entry fees and format will be announced during the coming week though we do plan to hold the amounts at the same rates as previous years where possible.

Last Man Standing

This year the club is running a Last Man Standing competition which will be ran in conjunction with the All Ireland Senior Football Championship. The premise of the competition is simple; you pay your entry fee (€10) before the competition begins and from the round of fixtures you pick a team to win. That team wins you stay in, lose or draw you are out. The person who can stay in the completion the longest will be the last man standing. Entry forms will be available from any committee member or any senior panel member. If you need any more details please contact Stephen Sheil. More details will be made available in the coming weeks. Competition begins on Saturday 20th May so make sure you have your picks in before that date.